Magic number = 4

The Three Stars from Tuesday’s 3-1 Reds victory over the Cubs:

No. 3 star: Darwin Barney, CHC — 2-for-3, run scored. Barney was the only player from either side to notch more than one hit.

No. 2 star: Ryan Hanigan — 1-for-3. It was Hanigan’s bases loaded double off of Manny Corpas in the sixth that scored all three of Cincinnati’s runs. The Reds were 1-for-10 RISP on the night, so that was a big one for sure.

“It felt good,” Hanigan said. “Bases loaded, it’s got to come to you in that situation. I was trying to get the ball in the outfield, and drive it out there. Fortunately, it got over their heads and worked out.”

No. 1 star: Homer Bailey — 7 1/3 ip, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 4 K, 106 pitches/66 strikes. In a superb outing, Bailey retired a stretch of 10 in a row until Barney’s one-out single in the eighth. Pinch-hitter Bryan LaHair’s RBI double into the right field corner scored Barney and finished his night. Over his last four starts, Bailey is 2-0 with a 1.55 ERA

“Later in the year is really the indication of how your off-seasons go and how you prepare during the season and keeping the same routine,” Bailey said. “This month, I’ve felt stronger now than I did in July.”

“Homer was great,” Dusty Baker said. “He threw the ball excellent. He had all his pitches working. He was down in the zone. He came up with two strikes when necessary and got a number of stirkeouts up there.”

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With custom slumping it gels spool nice to see bailey stepping up I have been too critical of him. Also to hear him say he feels better now than in July good mean he is about to blossom from a bottom of the rotation kind of a guy to the man. Even with gusto on the Fritz any team is going to struggle with arroyo larks and bailey. I see part of our secret is arroyo. He pitches slow ball..and then Lagos brings heat and bailey ups it another notch (thigh bailey doesn’t have Lagos stuff yet he does have great ball movement) leaks…. will he is the odd man out and his struggles of late are reinfiorcing the idea that he wont be in the playoffs.

Habitable should be #1 on your daily stars mark. He got the game teaches bailey how to pitch out of jams and delivers all the rbis.

LOL. Actually none, my first attempt at trying to send a message from a kindle. yeah touch screen typing just doesn’t work for me. I was essentially praising Homer Bailey and that his statement of saying that he feels stronger now than he did in July bodes well for him not only for the remainder of this season but might be the true sign that this guy is a keeper.
In the past I have been critical of Bailey, but when he is on he is on. There is really no mediocore for this guy. He either sucks or is lights out.

With the starting pitching and bull pen starting to get on another roll. Dusty’s task is to get BP,Stubbs,Rolen,Frazier,Bruce and Ludwick hitting the way they did when Joey was out of the line up.Unbelieveable that after missing all those games he is still leading the league in intentional walks. If it wasn’t obvious that other managers aren’t going to let him beat them go back to the Pirate series. In extra innings Hurdle intentionally/unintentionally walked him to load the bases with 1OUT and guys on 1st and second. Again that wasn’t with first base open that was with guys on first and second. The rest of the line up has to make them pay. If our hitters get on another hot streak we will be a very dangerous team in playoffs with our starters and backend of our bull pen throwing well.

On another matter, the Reds need to rest Cueto. He’s hit 203 innings and is showing signs of wildness. His previous high was 185.2 innings pitched, in 2010. Sit the man down and tune him up for the playoffs.

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